Container icing machine



Aug. 19, 1952 w. w. BATEMAN CONTAINER ICING MACHINE 4 Sheets-sheaf 2Filed April 26, 1950 M4 4 m M 14 BATE/WAN INVENTOR.

A TTORNEY W. W. BATEMAN CONTAINER ICING MACHINE Aug. 19, 1952 FiledApril 26, 1950 Q 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 MM w M I flllllllllllp TEMA N EN TOR.

A TTORNE Y Aug. 19, 1952 W. W. BATEMAN CONTAINER ICING MACHINE 4Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed April 26, 1950 IN V EN TOR.

WILL 1,4 M 14! BHTE'MAN A TTORNEY Patented Aug. 19, 1952 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE CONTAINER ICING MACHINE William W. Bateman, Mineral Wells,Tex.

Application April 26, 1950, Serial No. 158,161 9 cla ms. (01. 226-459)This invention relates to ice handling machlnery and more particularlyto a machine for depositing predetermined quantities of crushed ice intoindividual containers such as bottle crates. I

The invention has for its prime objects, first: to elevate and depositblocks of ice into a crushing machine for sizing and delivery into ahopper for reception by a quantity measuring chamber. Second: to providemeans for moving containers in end to end relationship below themeasuring chamber combined with automatically actuated means fordischarging into the containers a predetermined quantity of crushed icefrom said measuring chamber. Third: to interrupt operation of the icecrushing machine when the receiving hopper is filled to capacity, andfourth: to provide means actuated by the containers themselves forprohibiting further release of ice from the measuring chamber whennormal travel of containers is interrupted for any reason.

Other objects will appear as the description proceeds, taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a front end elevational view of a machine constructedaccording to the invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevational view.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view, partly in section, showing the crushingmachine control switch and actuating means therefor.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the containerconveying rollers, trip shoe and locking means therefor, including theclutch through which is actuated the ice ejecting plunger.

Figure 5 is a detail view of the clutch, partly in section.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the driving gear assembly and showingthe measuring hopper agitating cam, and

Figure 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of the means for holding thecontainer trip shoe in operative position.

Continuing with a more detailed description of the drawing, reference ismade primarily to Figure 1 wherein is shown the vertical frame I0 of theice elevator which, together with the ice crushing machine embodied inthe housing H, forms the subject matter of an application for LettersPatent Serial No. 151,467, filed by the applicant hereof on March 23,1950.

The vertical frame l0 extends above the main frame (2 of the containerfilling machine of the present invention and its upper end terminatesadjacent the mouth of the hopper [3 of the ice crushing machine. A chain14 travels over sprockets arranged on shafts at the top and bottom ofthe frame l0 and the chain carries lugs, not shown, which engage undersuccessive blocks of ice moving down a chute l5 into the bottom of theframe 10, and which lugs elevate the blocks of ice to the top of theframe I 0, to be deposited into the hopper l3 of the ice crushingmachine in which they are crushed in the manner described in theco-pending application aforesaid. Described also in said application isthe safety catch, consisting of a pair of arms I6, mounted on atransverse shaft l1, supported on the frame 10 and which arms extendinto the path of ice blocks moving upward in the frame and which areeffective to intercept the ice block should it fail to enter the hopperl3 and fall back into the elevator frame. The catch supports the iceblock until the next succeeding chain lug is brought into position toengage and move the block on into the hopper [3 for crushing. F

The chain I4 is driven through the mediurrl of a motor lBa (Fig. 1)which drives a pulley and belt assembly concealed in the guard housingHa. The upper pulley of the assembly drives'a shaft l8a which in turnoperates gears in housing Isa to drive the upper sprocket, not shown,

over which the chain l 4 operates.

The present invention consists of the frame I2 in which is mounted ameasuring hopper l8 having a horizontal flange IS on two sides thereofat its top and which flange, as better shown in Figure 3, is embraced bya reinforcing frame 20. The flange and frame are drilled on one side toreceive the threaded upper ends of a pair of vertically reciprocablerods 2| (Figs. 2, 4 and 6) one of which is disposed adjacent each frontleg of the frame l2 to support the hopper l8 on one side. A nut 22 isthreaded onto the upper end of each of the two supporting rods 2| (Fi2). In support of the opposite side of the hopper I8 is a pair ofshorter rods 23 (Figs. 2 and 3), one at each rear corner of the hopperand extending through a hole drilled in the flange and reinforcing frame20 thereof. A nut 24 is threaded onto the upper end of this rod, whichlatter is shown as having a threaded portion 25 spaced below its upperend to define an annular shoulder 26 (Fig. 3) on which rests the flangeof the hopper [8. The rod extends downwardly through aligned openings ina U-shaped bracket 21 and a coil spring 28 embraces the rod between thelegs of the bracket. A nut 29 is threaded onto the larger section 25 ofthe rod and bears against the upper end of the coil spring while thelower end of the spring rests upon the lateral lower leg of the bracket21.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the hopper I8 is supportedsolely by the rods H on one side and the shorter rods 23 on the oppositeside and, by virtue of the springs 28 on the rods 23, the hopper iscapable of vertical displacement, as caused for example, bycrushedicedischargedthereinto from the ice crushin andsizing machineimmediately thereabove. The purpose in so mounting the measuring hopperi8 is to provide a means by which to interrupt operation of the icecrushing machine whenthehopper I8 is filled with ice. Thisisaccomplished through the medium of a switch'30 (Figs. '2 and 3)against whose contact 3| is moved ithe'lower end of one of the rods 23when the weight of the crushed ice in the hopper l8 overcomes-theresistance of the springs 28. The leads 32 of the switch 30 are .incircuit withranelectric motor 3'3 6Fig. 1) which drivesithe icelcrushingmachine through belt 34; pulleys :35; CFignZ) tandmeshed gears 336.Thus, when theihopper :Izfl is .filledgits weight willcause the :rod tothe downwardly displaced and the switch :willbe actuated thereby -toopen the circuit to motor 33, deenergizing :the *same and stopping theice crushing-machine.

-The--rods"2 [,in addition to supporting onezside of the hopper -18, arealso employed :as a .medium for agitating or shaking the hopperitodislodge ic therein and to insure free how of-rthe ice therethrough.'As'will be seen in Figs. Land 6, the lowerendof each rod 2 1ispivotally attached atfiilw-to'an arm a, one o'f which is affixedadjacent each end of :a transverse shaft 36a. The endsof shaft 360, arejournaled :inlbearings provided in the ends of basecastings 51f-generallythe same structural form, one being mounted'opposite theother on lower-side membars 38 ofthe main frame I2. Referringparticularly-to Figure '6, it will be seen that :one end of -shaft'dfiaextends through a gear housing 39 and carries an arm 40- which .is fixedthereon.

The end .of=-arm 4'0 rides-on the. face ":of a cam 41, mounted on theend of-a shaft 42"which is parallelwith shaft 35a. The faceof cam 4| hasa gradual rise and an-abruptdrop 1 13 which'zterminates longitudinalreciprocation to. each iof the upon angle iron cross members 49 at thefront and-rear ,of frame [2 isra platform .56 (Fig. .2),

haying side flan es 5| to guide containers, not

shown, which are moved end to end or sideto sid as the case may be, overthe platform 50 i a c n inuous line,- such asby any suitable form ofendless conveyor on which the crates or containers may be advanced ontothe platform 56. The rear end of the platform 59 is in register yvi-thatrack-way 51a on which containers are conveyed into the machin forfilling. The front end of the platform 50 i in register with a ramp 52at the front of the machine and which is hinged at 53 so that it may bedisposed at any desired angle, either up or down or even on the sameplane as the platform, depending upon the direction in which the filledcontainers are to be moved.

The platform 50 has openings therein in which operate rollers 54. Thereare two of these rollers, as better shown in Figur 4, and-these aremounted on the shaft 52 previously referred to. The purpose of theserollers will be explained after the description of the ice dispensingmechanism which immediately follows:

The ice dispensing mechanism by which crushed ice is transferred fromthe hopper I8 .into waiting containers therebelow consists of anelongated measuring chamber 55 below and in communication with thehopper l8, into which crushed ice falls by gravity from the hopper.Arranged :for longitudinal sliding movement in the .chamber 55 is .apusher plate or hollow plunger 5B' which issubstantially squareintransverse section and is closed except for its rear end to preventcrushed ice from being released fromrthe hopper 118 except when it is inretracted position. Extending through the open rear of the plunger :56and pivotally attached at 51 to the innerend'thereof ,is a link 58. Thelinkextends out 'the rear end of the plunger and is pivotally engaged bya pair of parallel arms 59 which are .mountedon and depend from atransverse shaftfill, whose ends are journaled in bearings :61 mountedon the opposed vertical membersof'the frame 12. The shaft 60, however,extends beyond one vertical frame member, as shown ;in Figure :l, andcarries a circular plate 62, which is fixed :to the shaft and on theface of the .platei formed 2. :lug =63. Formed also on :the plate :andin relationship with the lug 63 isaprotuberance 64, through whichthreadedly passes a screw 65. Between the lug and the endof screw '65extends a lever 66 which is free on the shaft but rotates the latter byalternate engagement with the lug 53 and screw 64, the latter providing:an adjustment in th degree of displacement of the lever andconsequently limits the extent of oscillation imparted to the shaft 50.

It is evidentfrom the foregoing that as the lever 65 is actuated, shaftwill be oscillated to reciprocate the plunger 55 through link 58 andthearms 59. .Such movement of the plunger .56 will "thrust crushed icefrom the opposite end of the chamber .55, which is normally closed by aplate 61, hinged at 63 to the top of the chamher, as shown in Figure '2.The crushed ice is thus expelled from the chamber 55 in measuredquantities :and is received in the containers moving through the machinebelow the chamber.

To operate the lever 68, an arm 69 is pivoted thereto at 715 and extendsangularly downward and its lower .end is pivoted at H (Figs. 2 and 4) toan end of an arm 12, the latter being affixed to-an element of theclutch, to be later described, which is mounted on the roller shaft 42..It is apparent therefore that as the shaft 42 rotates, the arm 12 willmove in a circular path to reciprocate the longer arm 69 and willtherefore oscillate the lever 55 to bring about the results abovedescribed.

Referring again to the rollers 54 on shaft 42, it will be observedparticularly in Figure 4 that ashaft 13 is disposed rearwardly of andparallel with the shaft 42 on which these rollers are mounted and theends of this shaft are journalled in the opposed base plates 31. A tripshoe I4 is attached to the shaft I3 through the medium of a pair offixed arms and this shoe is held normally in the raised position shownin Figure 4 by means of a pin 16 (Fig. '7) reciprocally arranged in ahousing H which latter is affixed to and extends angularly upward fromthe horizontal flange of a base casting 31 in the direction of shaft 13.A coil spring 18 is contained in the housing 1! thrusting the pin 16against a lug 19 which is also affixed to the shaft 13.

The shoe 14 controls passage of containers through the machine and iseffective to operate the clutch shown in detail in Figure 5, throughwhich is actuated the crushed ice discharging mechanism just described.The clutch is comprised of the housing 80 which is cast integral withthe base castings 31 and contains a clutch collar 8| rotatably retainedin the housing 80. A driven element 82, slidably mounted on the shaft 42is normally urged into engagement with the driving element 83 by meansof a coil spring 84 surrounding shaft 42 within the clutch collar 80.One end of the spring bears against a collar 85, threaded onto the endof shaft 42 while the opposite end exerts a force against the inner endof element 82, bringing about engagement thereof with element 83 whichlatter is secured to shaft 42 by means of a key 86. Such engagement ofclutch elements 82 and 83 will result in rotation of the arms 12 andconsequent oscillation of the connecting arm 69 to operate the iceejecting or discharging mechanism earlier described.

In order that the containers themselves will bring about operation ofthe clutch to control the icing cycle, a cam 81 (Fig. 4) is afiixed tothe end of the shaft 13 on which the shoe 14 is mounted. This cam has alobe 88 which is adapted to be received in a recess 89 in a bar 90 eachtime the shoe M is raised to its highest position. The bar 90 isreciprocable and is piv- 'otally connected by means of a pin 9| to thebifurcated head 92 of a clutch engaging plunger 93. A torsion spring 94is attached to the pivot pin 9! of the bar 98 in such manner that aportion of the spring will undertie the bar to hold the same inoperative relationship with the cam 89 while the free ends of the springare adapted to bear against a protuberance 95 affixed to and extendingoutward from a base casting 31, in the manner shown. The spring 94therefore serves the dual purpose of sustaining the bar 90 flexibly withrespect to cam 89 and to thrust the plunger 93 inwardly to disengage thedriven element 82 from the driving element 83 against the resistance ofclutch spring 85.

The plunger 93 enters the clutch housing 89 through a bore made in aboss 96, formed on one side of the housing and the inner end of theplunger is adapted to be moved into a position to bear against theannular cam face 91 (Fig. 5) formed on the clutch collar 8!, against theforce exerted by the coil spring 84, thus to disengage the clutchelements 82 and 83.

When the bottle crate or container is thrust against the shoe [4, thelatter is depressed, causing the shaft 13 to oscillate and thus actuatecam 81. The lobe 88 of the cam being at this moment in engagement withthe recess 89 of the retracting bar 90, causes this bar to recede,against the resistance of its torsion spring 94, thereby withdrawing theplunger 93 from engagement with the cam 91 on clutch collar 8|. Theclutch element 82 will therefore be urged by spring 84 into engagementwith the driving element 83, whereupon the ice ejecting or dischargemechanism will be set into motion for a period just sufficient for onecycle of operation, that is to say, one cycle for each time the trip 14is depressed, regardless of how long the trip is held down. Thisarrangement insures against continued'operation of the ice dischargingmechanism should the normal travel of containers be interrupted. I

It is the primary purpose of the invention to provide apparatus foricing milk bottle crates which are to be loaded onto delivery trucks. istherefore important that passage of iced containers from the machine beregulated in keeping with the speed at which the containers are loadedonto the delivery trucks.

To accomplish the foregoing, a delaying shoe 98 (Fig. 2) is hinged at 99to the underside of the ramp 52, down which the iced crates or con--tainers pass from the machine.

adapted, under the weight of a container, to oc'- cupy an opening I60 inthe ramp and thus be flush with the top surface thereof. Depression ofthe shoe by a container moving down the ramp is effective to lock thecontainer trip shoe (4 in raised position, thus to preclude furtheroperation of the filling mechanism until the crate resting on the shoe98 is removed.

Locking of the trip shoe M is accomplished through an arm HI! (Fig. 2)which is pivoted at I02 to a lug W3, affixed to the underside of theshoe 98. The opposite end of arm lfll is pivoted at an end of a lever HMwhich, in turn, is pivoted intermediate its ends at to a projection I86at the front of the machine frame. To the opposite or lower end of leverI04 is pivoted at I01 another arm [88 (see Fig. 4). The arm I98 extendsinto the machine under the shaft 36a and roller shaft 42 and is pivotedat its inner end to the lower end of a latchlllQ which is pivoted to,

a projection Hi3 affixed to the inner surface of one of the basecastings 31. The latch I89 is notched at its upper end to receive thelower forward edge of the trip shoe 14 in the manner shown in Figure 4,thereby holding the shoe in raised position as long as there is acontainer resting on the delaying shoe 98.

When the crate or container is moved from structure into the hopper 13of the ice crushing;

machine. The ice crushing machine in housing H crushes the blocks of iceand deposits the ice in hopper l8. Since the ice crushing machine isdriven by motor 33, the machine will cease operating whenever hopper I8is filled with crushed ice to the degree necessary to depress the sideof hopper l8 yieldably supported on rods 23 and springs 28 and actuatethe switch 30. When supply of ice in hopper l8 becomes depleted, theside of hopper [8 supported on rods 23 is raised by springs 23, switch38 moves to its original position and the ice crushing machine againfills hopper l8. In this manner hopper I8 is always supplied withcrushed ice. Plunger 56 is initially in the position shown in Figure 2and, therefore, the chamber 55 is filled with crushed ice from This shoeis I The trip shoe I4 acumen;

hopper I 8a: said chamber. 55, communicates there-- with.

The containersor crates-to. befilled with pro-.-

determined quantities of crushed ice are pushed onto. trackway- 51 wandbetween the side flanges of platform 50 fromany suitable form of endlessconveyor, not shown, which continuously exertsa force on the-crateswhich urges them to a move toward the ramp 52, and as the front side orend of-ga-crate-reachestrip 14-, it depresses trip 74... Assuming now.that. shoe SB'isin position shown in Eigurez; lobe. 88 of cam 81, whichisin recess. 89,-.willpull-bar: 90=-and plunger 93-rearwa11dly.. Plunger93-will disengage from the. cam.

91 onzcluteh-collar. 8i and the driven'element 82 will engage thedriving element 83. The linkage comprising arms 12 and 69, lever 66;plate- 62 and arms;'59.wil1 thenbe driven by -shaft '42 and will cause.pusher plunger 56* to move toward the:

hingedplate: 6-1 which pivots on its hinge 68 when pressed bythe ice inchamber 55-which is pushed,

by-plate 56s 'I'heice inchamber 55.will thus beforced from chamberiiandwill pass by gravity into thecrateswhich are passingdirectlyunderneath-chamber 55.v As. thefront end. of. the. crate passesltrip l4itcQntacts rollers 54 which are. positionedhigher than trip .14. ismoved onward by theucratesbehind it, first its front ,end .and. thenits. rear end will be raised by the rollersil. This will. permit trip 14to rise which will allow plunger. 93 to again engage cam 9T'and'disenga-gethe elements 82 and 83 of the clutch. The gearingbetweenmotor 48 and shaft 42. .is chosen to allow plunger 56 to move forwardand back during one revolutionof shaft 42..

To insure thatonly one cycle" of oscillation of plung,er.56 will occur.during the passage'of any one crate over trip I4; lobe 88.:and recess 89are so shaped thatlobe 88 will slip out of recess 89 as trip, 14*movesto its lowermost position due to the passageof crate. Torsion spring 94which yieldingly urgesretracting bar 90 toward engagement with lobe 88-will allowdownward movement of' bar 90 Bar 90' and plunger 93 will'therefore befree to move to their original positions. Lobe 88 will rideon the-top surfaceof bar 90 adjacent its-*freeenduntil' trip'14' movesto its original position after the crate passes. therefore-,that plunger93 will be moved outwardly foronly one revolution of shaft 42 upondepression of-Ifrip.1'4-"by=a:crate no matter'how long trip 14 isheldrinits depressed positionby the crate.

If crates after'their filling are not removed from the. machine theforemost crate'will descend ramp 52?and,depress the shoe 98 which inturn will'cause latch lll9-itoipivot-intoa positionintwhichjt willblocledownward movement of trip 14. Trip: 14 will-,. therefore,remain-in its upperposition'regardlessroftthe force exerted upon it bythe-crate which ,willbe. next in line.

motionvof plunger 56'.

circular plate 62.- As is most readily seen inFigures:=-1:and:2, rollers54 are positioned inline with flanges-5 .at the sidesof the platform 50.Platform-50 and flanges 51 are cut out as ata- (Fig. 2)

to: allow rollers 54 to be positioned at the BX-J treme. sides ofplatform 50. Thisis also true of trip l4s as is.- shown in Figure 2.Being disposedatr-the-sides-of platform 50; rollers and trip 14-willeachengagethe lower edge of a side-of, th -crate passing. over, them; Thisfeature. .pre-.--

As the crate.

It is evident Latch 98' and tripfl lv therefore cooperate topreventifurther movement, of: thercrates. and to prevent furtheroscillatory This prevents-crate from receiving. more tha-n thepredetermined amount of ice determined-bytheposition of screw 65 onvents-thetrip-H- from; violently contacting the bottles in openbottomcrates as it moves back to its upper.- position under the forceexertedby spring 18 since. it must of'neoessity contact the. edge of' a side ofthe'crate-which will prevent upward movement. Trip 14 will thereforeoperate in the same manner regardless of the-type of construction ofthecratewhether solid bottom or ope-n frame.-

It'will be noted that shaft 42rotates'continuously, it:being driven bymotor 48-through gears. 44 and 45 and causes the hopper [8- to beshaken. continuously due to'the coaction of cam 4| and switch arm 40 .i

Manifestly, the ,constructionas shown and. de.-- scribedis capable ofsome modificationand such modification 1 asmay be construed to fallwithin the scope and: meaning of theiappended claimstis also considered;.to be within the=spirit and intent of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for delivering predetermined amounts of crushed-iceto containers: a hopperhaving an open lowerend adapted to containcrushed'ice; a measuring chamber disposed below saidopenlower-end'ofsaid hopper and communicating with said hopper through saidopen lower end, said chamber having a side mounted for pivotal movement;a pusher plate opposite said-pivotally mounted side forming the oppositeside of said chamber and mounted for oscillatory movement-toward andawayfrom said pivotally mounted side; a driven shaft; amechanical link ageconnecting said driven shaft to said pusher plate for oscillating saidpusher plate when said driven shaft is rotated; a driving shaft; aclutch between said shafts adapted to connect said driven shaft to saiddriving shaft; a platform beneath said chamber adapted to support saidcon-- tainers-for movement below and past said chamber; a trip disposedin the path of movement of said'containers along said platform; amechanical linkage connecting said trip and saidclutch for connectingsaid shafts when said trip is actuated. in its movement along saidplatform; a rampconnected to said platform; a shoe pivotally disposedadjacent said ramp; a latch adjacent said-trip and adapted to preventactuation of saidtrip; and a mechanical linkage connectingsaid shoeandsaid; latch for preventing actuation of said trip when one of saidcontainers is disposed on saidramp.

2. In an. apparatusv for delivering. predeter. mined amounts of crushedice to containers; a. hopperhaving an open lower end adapted to; containcrushed ice; a measuring chamber disposed below said open lower end ofsaid. hopper and communicating with said hopper throughsaid open lowerend, said chamber having a side mounted for pivotalrmovement; a. pusher.plates oppositesaid pivotallymounted side forming the opposite .side ofsaid. chamber. and mounted .for. oscillatory movement toward and awayfrom said. pivotally mounted side; adriven shaft; a me.- chanicallinkage connecting said drivenshaft-to said pusher plate foroscillatingsaidpusherplate when said driven shaft is rotated; a drivingshaft; aclutch between saidshaftssadaptedto connect. said drivenshaft to saiddrivingshaft; a.plat.- form beneath said chamber. adaptedto. supportsaid containers... for movement-below and. past. said chamber; a trip.disposed. inthe path of movement of. said. containers along said platform; amechanical linkage connecting saidtrip and. said. clutch for.connecting said shafts for one revolution of said driving shaft whensaid trip is actuated by one of said containers in' its movement alongsaid platform; a' ramp connected to one end of said platform; a shoepivotally disposed adjacent said ramp; a latch adjacent said trip andadapted to prevent actuation of said trip; and a mechanical linkageconnecting said shoe and said latch for preventing actuation of saidtrip when one of said containers is disposed on said ramp.

3. In combination: an ice crushing device driven by an electric motor; ahopper to receive the ice crushed by said device; mounting means forsaid hopper allowing limited vertical movement of said hopper; a switchfor de-energizing said motor operatively associated with said mountingmeans and actuated when said hopper moves downwardly, a measuringchamber beneath and communicating with said hopper;

means for dispensing a predetermined quantity of crushed ice from saidchamber; a platform extending beneath said chamber and adapted to:support containers for movement beneath and past said chamber; a tripdisposed in the path of movement of said containers and operativelyation of said trip when one of said containers is disposed on said ramp.

4. In a device for dispensing measured amounts of material from ameasuring chamber into a container moving on a platform beneath and pastsaid measuring chamber; a rotatable trip shaft mounted transverse ofsaid platform; a trip rigidly secured to said trip shaft and radiallyspaced therefrom, said trip being adjusted to extend into the path ofmovement of :said container along said platform; spring means biasingsaid shaft to maintain said trip in the path of movement of saidcontainer; a driving shaft and a driven shaft mounted parallel to saidtrip shaft; a clutch adapted to connect said driving and driven shafts;a plunger operatively associated with said clutch to disconnect saiddriving and driven shafts in its inner position, said driving and drivenshafts being connected when said plunger is in its outer position; alever pivotally secured to one end of said plunger, said lever beingprovided with a notch; a cam rigidly secured to said trip shaft andhaving a lobe adapted to engage in said notch when said trip is actuatedby said container, said lobe moving said plunger to its outer positionas said trip is actuated and disengaging from said notch to release.said lever and said plunger when said trip approaches its fully actuatedposition; and a spring biasing said lever against said cam and biasingsaid plunger toward its inner position.

5. The device of claim 4, and a pair of rollers mounted on said drivingshaft adjacent opposite sides of and extending above said platform, saidtrip being biased by said spring to a position extending above saidplatform, said trip being disposed adjacent a side of said platform toengage a bottom edge of a side of said container when in its actuatedposition.

6. The device of claim 5, and a second cam on said driving shaft; avibrator shaft extending '7. The device-of claim 4, and a' sec'ond camonsaid driving shaft; a vibrator shaft extending. parallel to saiddriving shaft; a first arm on one end of said vibrator shaft bearingagainst said second shaft; and a second arm on the other end of saidvibrator shaft; and a rod pivotally connected to said second shaft andurging said first arm against said shaft, said second cam impartingoscillatory motion to said rod as said second cam is rotated by saiddriving shaft.

8. In an apparatus for delivering predetermined amounts of freelyflowing material to containers: a hopper adapted to contain the freelyflowing material; means for dispensing a predetermined quantity of thefreely flowing material from said hopper; a platform extending belowsaid hopper and adapted to support containers for movement beneath andpast said hopper; a trip disposed in the path of movement of saidcontainers; means actuated by said trip operatively associated withdispensing means for causing a single cycle of operation of saiddispensing means each time said trip is actuated by I a container onsaid platform, said dispensing means delivering a predetermined quantityof material to a container on the platform each time said trip isactuated, said trip having to return to non-actuated position and againbe actuated by another container on said platform before a second cycleof operation of the dispensing means can take place, a ramp connected toone end of said platform; a shoe pivotally disposed adjacent said ramp;a latch adjacent said trip and adapted to prevent actuation of saidtrip; and a mechanical linkage connecting said shoe and said latch forpreventing actuation of said trip when one of said containers isdisposed on said ramp.

9. In an apparatus for delivering predetermined amounts of material tocontainers: a hopper; means for dispensing a predetermined quantity ofmaterial from said hopper; a driven shaft; a mechanical linkageconnecting said driven shaft to said dispensing means for initiatingsingle cycle operation of said dispensing means when said driven shaftis rotated a single revolution; a driving shaft; a clutch between saidshafts adapted to connect said drivenshaft to said driving shaft; aplatform beneath said hopper adapted to support said containers formovement below and past said hopper; a trip disposed in the path ofmovement of said containers along said platform; a mechanical linkageconnecting said trip and said clutch for connecting said shafts for asingle revolution of said driving shaft each time said trip is actuatedby one of said containers in its movement aiong said platform, said triphaving to return to its non-actuated position before it can againactuate said clutch to connect said shafts for another single revolutionof said driving shaft, a ramp connected to one end of said platform; ashoe pivotally disposed adjacent said ramp; a latch adjacent said tripand adapted to prevent actuation of said trip; and a mechanical linkageconnecting said shoe and said latch for preventing actuation WILLIAM W.BATEMAN.

REFERENCES CITED.

The following references are of record'in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Name- Date Gra'f NOV-i 26; I912 Number Name DateRiley Nov. 30, 1920 Rieff Nov-. 17',- 1925 Mojonnier et-al. Mar. 10;1931 suppiger et-al Nov. 10, 1936 Hackworth Ju1y.l4, 1942 Lindholm Aug.7 1945

